Rajesh Exports acquires Valcambi, world’s largest gold refinery

Valcambi is the world’s largest precious metal’s refining company headquartered at Switzerland. Valcambi has processed and sold 945 tons of Gold and 325 tons of Silver on an average per year during the last three financial years which is more than the annual consumption of gold in India.

Rajesh Exports Limited (REL) (BSE Code: 531500, NSE Code: RAJESHEXPO), through it’s wholly owned subsidiary in Singapore has fully acquired European Gold Refineries, the 100% holding company of Valcambi in an all cash deal with a total investment of USD 400 Million. Grant Thorton assisted Rajesh Exports in due diligence and Credit Suisse is part financing the acquisition through a long term debt.

Mr. Michael Mesaric a globally recognized authority in gold industry and the current CEO of Valcambi, along with his entire senior management has agreed to be a part of REL for smooth transition and future expansion. With Valcambi acquisition, REL will become an integrated player covering precious metal refining & gold jewellery making. Valcambi acquisition will be EPS accretive for REL.

Gecko Worldwide has been assigned the national PR mandate to complement the expansion endeavors and capabilities of renowned retailer, P. N. Gadgil Jewellers Pvt Ltd., following a selection process that featured a number of competing firms.

Gecko Worldwide’s campaign will facilitate brand positioning, brand awareness and brand building support on the PR front for P. N. Gadgil Jewellers Pvt Ltd. with creative and strategic approach nationally. Gecko Worldwide was strategically handling public relations for PNG Jewellers in Mumbai and national magazines for the past 2 years.

Keyur Barad, Founder of Gecko Worldwide, said ”P. N. Gadgil Jewellers Pvt Ltd is one of the finest and renowned jewellery brands in India. We know this was an incredibly crucial decision for them and we are honored to be chosen as their trusted PR partner.” When asked what set Gecko Worldwide apart from the others, Saurabh Gadgil, Chairman and Managing Director of P. N. Gadgil Jewellers Pvt Ltd. stated, ”Gecko Worldwide is a subject matter expert in the lifestyle and corporate space, they have been managing our PR mandate for Mumbai city for the last two years. Their creative approach towards brand building and their proven ability to implement holistic campaigns across the Indian market ensured we took our relationship to the next step. We believe that this association will leverage our current intrinsic ventures.”

Taxman plans stricter compliance norms for bullion, real estate

To curb domestic black money generation, income tax authorities plan to intensify measures to ensure tax compliance by jewellery and real estate players. According to officials, collections through Tax Deduction at Source (TDS) in the real estate sector and Tax Collection at Source (TCS) in the bullion sector are much below estimates which, they feel, could be an indication of black money generation in these sectors.

The size of the bullion and jewellery market is estimated at `3 lakh crore. However, “tax is being collected at source on sale of bullion and jewellery amounting to only `300 crore at all-India level.” They also pointed to a 68 per cent reduction in TCS on sale of jewellery and bullion, while gold imports were at an all-time high. Across the country, TCS is being collected by only 249 jewellers, with Mumbai topping with 37 jewellers.

TCS on bullion and jewellery is being levied from July 1, 2012. The purpose behind this tax is to reduce the quantum of cash transaction in the sector and curbs the flow of unaccounted money in the trading system. It is levied at the rate of 1 per cent on cash purchase of jewellery worth `5 lakh or more and bullion worth `2 lakh or more. The plan is now to enhance verification in various cities to ensure compliance.

Courtesy: The Hindu BusinessLine

Government reduces import tariff value on gold, silver

Taking cue from global price trends, the government on Monday reduced the import tariff value of gold to $385 per 10 grams. The import tariff on silver has also been cut to $544 per kg. During last fortnight, the tariff value on imported gold was $398 per 10 grams and on silver at $567 per kg. The import tariff value is the base price at which customs duty is determined to prevent under-invoicing. It is revised on a fortnightly basis taking into account global prices.

Courtesy:timesofindia.com

Platinum gets gilt edge, sales up 30 per cent

Platinum jewellery sales have grown 25-30 per cent, driven by the new range of platinum bridal jewellery and the growing demand for platinum chains among Indian men. The demand has also increased since prices of platinum have fallen below gold by almost 400 per 10 gm, retailers said. Jitendra Vummidi, Managing Director of Chennai-based Vummidi Bangaru Jewellers, said the jewellery buying pattern in India has been evolving in the past few years and platinum has been gradually gaining prominence. “The men’s jewellery segment has been growing rapidly as the male audience seeks subtle elegance in jewellery that platinum is all about. We expect demand for platinum to accelerate further this year,” he said. What has helped the popularity of platinum in recent times is the price of the metal – currently it is hovering around 27,000 per 10 gm, while gold is commanding a price of 27,400 per 10 gm.

“This price trend is continuing for some time now which has attracted Indian consumers. In Ahmedabad, families are buying bridal necklaces worth 3-4 lakh. Urban consumers also prefer the white gold sheen of platinum,” said Kalpanik Choksi, Managing Director of Ishwarlal Harjivandas Jewellers that runs two stores in Ahmedabad. Even in the conservative market of eastern India, platinum jewellery consumption is increasing. “Platinum will continue to drive demand among the younger audience in 2015 with an eclectic mix of jewellery and are looking at a 25 per cent growth in 2015,” said Vijay Jain, CEO, Orra.

Courtesy:economictimes.com

Atlas Jewellery now Listed Entity through Rs 100-cr Acquisition

In a quiet move, Atlas Jewellers, one of the leading jewellers in Kerala, has become a listed entity on Bombay Stock Exchange, by acquiring a listed company GEE EI Woolens. Its founder M M Ramachandran has injected `100 crore into GEE EI Woolens and assumed complete control of the listed entity. Following the acquisition, the name of GEE EI Woolens’ has been changed to Atlas Jewellery India Ltd. The process of getting listed by acquiring a listed entity is called ‘reverse acquisition’ in stock market parlance.

“As the intention was to expand all over India, it was considered that a listed company would be the most ideal vehicle. In order to surge ahead, a listed company called GEE El Woolens was acquired and the name of the company was changed to Atlas Jewellery India Limited, and the objectives of the company were changed accordingly,” a company official said. A meeting of the Board of Directors of the Company held at Kochi on Saturday discussed various operational issues on how to move forward in this competitive yet attractive market. Atlas Jewellery India in the year 2013-14 – the first after acquisition, made a profit of `1.62 cr. In 2014-15, Atlas Jewellery made a profit of `3.17 crore. The turnover of export business in 2014-15 has been `190.17 crore.

Courtesy:newindianexpress.com

NCDEX launches forward contracts to mobilise recycled gold

To bring idle gold into the market, NCDEX launched forward trading contracts called ‘Gold Now’ in 1 kg and 100 grams gold bars including the recycled ones. The new forward gold contracts will not only give impetus to the Indian gold refinery industry, but also complement the government’s proposed Gold Monetisation Scheme (GMS) and ‘Make in India’ programme, it added. “We have launched two contracts — 100 grams and 1 kg gold bar contracts. We intend to offer contracts in 5 gram, 10 gram and 50 grams coins in the next six months,” NCDEX Managing Director and CEO told reporters.

Under ‘Gold Now’ contracts, one can trade in ‘imported gold’ accredited by the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) as well as recycled ‘India gold’ from domestic refineries, he said. Under these contracts, gold will be compulsorily delivered to buyers from six centres — Delhi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Kochi, Hyderabad and Chennai. To ensure quality of recycled domestic gold, NCDEX has accredited four domestic refineries — MMTC Pamp, Kundan, Shirpur Gold Refinery and Edelweiss Gold Refinery as ‘Good Delivery’ gold refiners on the exchange platform, he added.

Courtesy:economictimes.com

Gems & jewellery body forms committee of administration

The apex industry body of gems and jewellery said it has constituted a new administrative committee and named Manish Jain as its Chairman for a two-year term. Jain, an industry veteran, will head the committee of administration (COA) for the term 2015-2017, the All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation (GJF) said in a statement here.

The COA has been constituted with the view to ensure a fair and comprehensive representation for the gems and jewellery sector across India. The 24-member panel will oversee the various planning and administrative matters of GJF for two years (2015-2017), it said. The new COA members are industry veterans and bring with them a wealth of experience and skills that would add immense value to our initiatives and programmes,” he added.

Courtesy: Business Standard

Silver Emporium introduces hallmark silver jewellery in India

First generation jewellery entrepreneur Silver Emporium (SEPL) has introduced BIS hallmark silver jewellery and artifacts for the first time in India with lifetime buyback assurance. “We create quality. Thus, we offer silver jewellery with 912 purity. Hence, buying back is not an issue for us. Customers can dispose off their silver holding, bought from us, at any point of time either in exchange of new jewellery of the same weight or cash. We offer this facility to win customers’ trust which is currently lacking in silver jewellery,” said Rahul Mehta, Managing Director, SEPL. Undeterred by the ongoing weak sentiment in jewellery segment, SEPL plans to set up four company owned show rooms to strengthen its presence across all major Tier I cities. The idea is to expand reach and prevent customers from low quality silver purchase, said Mehta.

With negative returns due to falling prices across all precious metals during last year, investors’ sentiment has been weak with most of jewellery companies’ proposed expansion plans on slow track. But, SEPL has seen this trend to win its customers’ trust in silver jewellery. “There has been no hallmarking system in silver either in ornaments or any items. We, therefore, are emphasizing on customers’ education to insist on quality product with mandatory hallmarking. Therefore, we thought to expand our retail footprints in the area where potential is immense. Therefore, we want to set up four retail showrooms this year each one in Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Jaipur,” said Rahul Mehta, managing director, SEPL.

Courtesy: Business Standard

India’s exports may remain flat at $310 bn in FY16: Assocham

India’s exports are likely to remain flat at USD 310.5 billion-level or may even fall this financial year due to slow global demand for merchandise, Assocham has said. Overall the trade confidence is quite muted,” Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat said, impressing upon government to move fast on improving ease of doing business and reducing transaction costs for Indian shipments. The country’s exports stood at USD 310.5 billion against a target of USD 340 billion for 2014-15 fiscal.

While there has been a weak trend since July 2014, exports have been witnessing contractions since, January this year right through April, the industry body said. In fact, generally the last quarter of the fiscal turns out to be much better to make up for the previous quarters. However, it has been a different situation in the last quarter of fiscal 2014-15 and the first month of 2015-16, it said. Engineering products, gems and jewellery and petroleum products are the biggest contributors to the overall export basket in terms of value.

“The trend is likely to continue at least for gems and jewellery, while the situation may somewhat stabilise for the petroleum segment since after seeing a sharp fall, the crude oil prices have stopped seeing much of drop. Petroleum exports are related to the prices of crude oil,” Assocham said.

Courtesy: ET

India to keep gold jewellery out of Free Trade Agreements

The Indian Finance Ministry and Commerce Ministry has initiated steps to keep gold jewellery out of all Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) that are to be signed in future. Moreover, re-negotiations will be held with respective countries to remove gold jewellery from the existing FTAs. The move follows the observation made by the All India Gems and Jewellery Trade Federation (GJF) that the increased imports of gold jewellery from Thailand and other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries have damaged domestic gold jewellery making business in the country.

According to India-Thailand FTA, the exporters are required to pay only 1% duty on imports of gold jewellery imported from Indonesia. On the other hand, gold jewellery imports from other countries attract a duty of 10%. The low import duty has flooded the domestic market with imported gold jewellery from Indonesia.

The Commerce Ministry noted that the country’s gold imports surged higher by 19.5% to $34.32 billion in 2014-’15. It noted that gold jewellery imports from Thailand had violated rules of origin. Also, value addition norms were not met. India has already written to Indonesian authorities stating that it suspects violation of rules of origin in jewellery imported from that country.

The cheaper imports from Indonesia have hampered the domestic gold jewellers in the country, noted Manish Jain, Chairman, GJF. Import of raw gold normally attracts 10% duty. Along with cess and VAT, the total duties could go up to 12-13%. Considering 4% making costs, gold jewellery made in India turns out to be much expensive than those imported from Indonesia.

The Commerce Ministry confirmed that it will ensure that its view on international gold jewellery trade will be highlighted during the ongoing negotiations with regards to various trade pacts including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). It further assured that the government will do the needful to protect the domestic gold jewellery sector in the country which employs nearly 40 lakh skilled artisans.

Courtesy: Metal.com

Ichhapore gems park shines after decade

For the diamond company sightholders operating in the diamond hub of Varachha and Katargam, all roads are now leading to Gems and Jewellery Park run by Gujarat Hira Bourse (GHB) at Ichhapore. The park that remained deserted for almost a decade is now glittering with the diamond companies setting up their state-of-the-art units with the production of polished diamonds pegged at `30 crore per day.

The park has come as a boon for the diamantaires due to its proximity to the upcoming world-class Surat Diamond Bourse (SDB) at Diamond Research and Mercantile (DREAM) city at Khajod. GHB office-bearers said that another 25 diamond and jewellery manufacturing units are likely to start operations soon, taking the turnover to `100 crore per day by 2016. Some of the top companies setting up units are Shree Ramkrishna Export (SRK), KARP, Blue Star, Ankit Gems Private Limited, ADMG Diamonds Private Limited, etc.

Around 350 big and small diamond companies into jewellery manufacturing and diamond polishing from Mumbai and Surat had bought plots at the park to set up manufacturing units. The park was earlier declared a special economic zone (SEZ). Announced in 2004, the park was expected to become operational in three to four years. But there were frequent delays that led the GHB office-bearers to start the process to de-notify the park from the SEZ status after the central government withdrew the tax benefits and other incentives in 2011. The park now stands de-notified from the SEZ status.

Courtesy: Times of India

City of Antwerp launches Antwerp loves diamonds mobile app

The City of Antwerp has launched the “Antwerp loves diamonds” mobile app, which gives an overview of more than five centuries of diamond trade in Antwerp and useful tips for purchasing a gemstone. It has been launched with the support of the government. “The city as a whole should do more internationally to take advantage of the fact that Antwerp is the leading global diamond center”, says Koen Kennis, Alderman for Tourism. “This app will position Antwerp even better as a top tourist destination. Indeed, the diamond trade is one of our incomparable assets that distinguishes us from the rest of the world.”

The app reveals the secrets of diamonds by means of all sorts of fascinating facts. A brief historical overview casts a light on the global history of the diamond trade. The themes, “From mine to finger” and “Who does what” provide an overall picture of the diamond industry and trade. In the “Hall of Fame”, visitors encounter remarkable diamonds and diamond objects, along with famous individuals who had a connection with diamonds, such as Rubens and Napoleon. “We speak diamonds” addresses the multicultural dimension of the diamond trade.

The app also provides tips for purchasing diamond jewelry and an overview of the jewelers that have earned the “Antwerp’s Most Brilliant” quality label. A list of locations gives users the option of selecting their favorite locations having a connection with diamonds, and in this way plan their own route. The mobile app is available in four languages and is free to download via the App Store (iOS) or Google Play Store. Once downloaded, the app is fully functional offline.

Courtesy: Diamond World

CCI nod to IndusInd Bank’s acquisition of jewellery business of RBS

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved IndusInd Bank’s acquisition of diamond and jewellery financing business of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in India, says a report. CCI order stated that the combination is not likely to have any adverse effect on the market. The commission approves IndusInd Bank’s acquisition of gem and jewellery portfolio of Royal Bank of Scotland. However, the exact size of the deal was not disclosed, the RBS’ jewellery business has a loan book of Rs. 4,500 crore and related deposits, adds a report.

Courtesy: Diamond World

Gold imports in India dip around 8% in the first quarter

If the Finance Ministry’s import and import duty collections data for the first three-months are an indicator, then gold appears to be losing its shine. The provisional data of the tax authorities showed a decline of around 8 per cent, and a 15 per cent decline in value terms. Interestingly, the Commerce Ministry data for the first two months show a surge in imports.

According to the tax authorities’ data, gold import during April-June quarter stood at 203 ton against 221 ton during the corresponding period of the last fiscal. Value of imported gold was recorded at around Rs 46,000 crore, much lower than `54,800 crore of last fiscal. “Lower quantity combined with depreciating price resulted in lower duty collection,” a senior Tax Department official told. He said that a little over Rs 3,300 crore was collected as import duty on gold as against around `4,900 crore in the corresponding period of the last fiscal. Gold attracts import duty at the rate of 10 per cent and is one of the major contributors in total custom duty collection. The overall custom duty collection grew by 20 per cent during April-June period of the current fiscal.

Courtesy: Business Line

Elite prefer diamonds over gold

Diamond giant De Beers, in its diamond acquisition study, has found out that the elite prefer diamonds over yellow metal jewellery.

The study involved over 40,000 women across major cities in the country. The objective of the study was to understand diamond buying behaviour of the Indian consumer in tier 1, 2 and 3 cities in the year 2014.

Explaining the findings, Sachin Jain, president Forevermark India, a diamond brand under the De Beers Group, said that the study has also revealed a marked shift in the preferences of working women who are more into simple jewellery that matches their individuality.

“Through the fourth edition of the three-day Forevermark Forum, we want to focus on improved design and technology for the making of diamond jewellery in the coming years,” Jain added.

Stephen Lussier, CEO, Forevermark, stressed the need to tackle future challenges of the diamond industry said that his company is working on setting up several diamond mines from Canada to South Africa, to meet the demand for high quality diamonds that match the trend for best looking diamonds.

The event saw attendance from 110 indian and 15 foreign diamond jewellery retailers.

N. Gadgil Jewellers Pvt. Ltd won three awards at the ‘National Award for Marketing Excellence 2015’, recently held at Taj Lands End, Mumbai. The award ceremony was hosted by the World Marketing Congress and supported by CMO Asia.

The award ceremony marked the magnanimous achievements of the brand under the categories ‘Emerging Brand Award’, for achieving astonishing heights, ‘Brand Revitalization Award’, for keen acumen into marketing advances and strategic alliances and ‘Award for Marketing Excellence in Gems & Jewellery Sector’ for the enormous contributions of the brand in the gems & jewellery industry.

Saurabh Gadgil, Chairman & Managing Director of P. N. Gadgil Jewellers received these awards from the hands of Dr Saugata Mitra, Head HR & Chief People Officer, Mother Dairy Fruit & Vegetable Pvt. Ltd. Some of the prestigious names in the Jury included those of Arun Arora, Ex-President, The Economic Times (The Times of India Group), Steve Brown, Chief Patron, CMO Asia, Michael Wong, Global Head, Thought Leaders International amongst many others.

“I am extremely honored to receive three awards by the ‘National Award for Marketing Excellence 2015’. For almost two centuries now, P. N. Gadgil Jewellers has build credibility, trust, tradition and personified heritage by delighting generations of customers with superior quality jewellery. With persistent efforts, we are determined to further enhance customer experience and provide value, not only with our innovative designs but also by introducing unique concepts like ‘Try on’ feature on our eCommerce website and a ‘Mobile App’ to help the consumers holistically. This will help us to reach out to our customers domestically and internationally which in turn will increase our brand visibility and our business extensively on global map.” said Mr. Saurabh Gadgil.

India’s leading bank – IndusInd Bank has completed acquiring the diamond and jewellery financing business portfolio of Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in India, reports say. It was in April this year that IndusInd Bank announced having entered into an agreement with RBS for the same, subject to regulatory approval, reports say,

With this deal, IndusInd Bank expects its to strengthen its market share in financing the diamond and jewellery sector. The loan portfolio is around Rs 4,100 crore, reports add.

RBS was looking at exiting its Indian presence following its parent in UK going in for a government bailout post economic global crisis in 2008. RBS had received the nod from Reserve Bank in 2012 to sell its retail banking business to HSBC, and RBS decided to close its business slowly, reports add.

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